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Adrian Kempe scored two goals and Artemi Panarin collected a goal and two assists, fueling the visiting Los Angeles Kings to their first win of the season with a 5-2 decision over the Washington Capitals on Tuesday.
Defenseman Erik Gustafsson scored the go-ahead goal at 7:28 of the third period after a nifty end-to-end rush.
With his team on the power play, Gustafsson split a pair of defenders before chipping the puck past Logan Thompson to give Los Angeles a 3-2 lead. The goal was Gustafsson’s first in the NHL since Jan. 12, 2025, while playing for the Detroit Red Wings.
Kempe capped his multi-goal performance just over four minutes later by converting Panarin’s feed in front of the net.
Scott Laughton completed the scoring with an empty-net goal for the Kings, who mustered just four goals in their previous four games.
Alex Laferriere notched two assists and Darcy Kuemper made 30 saves against his former team.
Kings forward Quinton Byfield exited in the first period with an upper-body injury and did not return
Ryan Leonard and defenseman Cole Hutson each scored in the first period for the Capitals, who fell to 2-1-0 on their five-game homestand. Thompson turned aside 21 shots in the loss.
Leonard skated from the top of the left circle into the high slot and wired a shot past both a moving screen and Kuemper to open the scoring at 9:25 of the first period. The goal was Leonard’s fourth of the season and second in as many games.
Hutson stickhandled into the offensive zone and used Kings defenseman Drew Doughty as a screen before beating Kuemper inside the near post on the power play to double the advantage with 1:25 remaining in the first period.
Kempe cut the deficit to 2-1 with 33 seconds left in the first period, firing a shot under the crossbar off a pass from Panarin.
A pinch by Mikey Anderson forced a turnover from forward Jonny Brodzinski, and Panarin buried a sharp-angle shot to tie 2-2 with two seconds left in the first period.
–Field Level Media
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